Jn 4:4-42 

Today’s Gospel has many levels, one deeper than the next, drawing us into a saving dialogue with a very unrelenting God. Jesus is talking about thirst which is a very appt symbol for the deepest yearnings of the human heart, a very relevant topic for all of us. The woman from Samaria is a model for us. She embodies the transition to wholeness and holiness that is encouraged by the thirst God places in each of us.

Right off, the woman basically rejects any kind of dialogue. For a man and woman to be talking in public was a gross violation of a deep sexual taboo. Then, add the Jewish and Samaritan elements of group hostility and you have an explosive situation. It is as if she says to Jesus, “You truly are one ignorant hombre to ask me for a drink. Do you have any idea how much trouble this can bring to both of us?”

Jesus cuts through her defenses for the first of many times. He asks about her husband. She goes theological on him to avoid this delicate topic. Her relationships are the last thing she wants to talk about. Nor does it seem to be Jesus’ concern. With the woman and with us, Jesus’ agenda is about the possibilities of the future not the often painful issues of the past. The woman reluctantly allowed to surface the thirst in her heart for something more. Her gradual openness to Jesus would draw her into the living water that is Jesus. Mercy knows no limits when Jesus is concerned.

Jesus persists. As before, He takes her response and goes deeper. The truth of His living water bubbles to the surface. She takes a sip. It frees up her fears and resistance. She soon discovers she is on to something good here. Her genuine openness shines brightly in contrast to the closed minds at that time and in our time. In spite of the personal cost, she is receptive to the dialogue and exposure to some painful self-awareness. She is a model for us. We, too, thirst for truth, understanding, mercy, a change of heart and a new beginning. The cost for us is also a painful self-knowledge and a call to change.

As she finally opens herself up to Jesus, she experiences a new freedom and a power beyond her dreams. She casts off the burden of her disgrace and all the other destructive baggage that was her life along with the hurt in her heart.

She drinks deeply of the living water of Jesus. She begins to grasp that this is what she had always been seeking in the confusion and self-deception that had been the driving force of her life. Now, our Samaritan friend becomes a disciple to her townsfolk. She understood that the living water of Jesus was a gift of salvation to be shared with all.

As Jesus had said earlier to the first disciples, she now proclaims to the people of her village, “Come and see!” (John1:39) They do, and are joyful in what they find. It is the combination of God’s thirst for us and our thirst for God that invites us to share their common joy.

This is a story of salvation and how it works. It is our story. Our God is a patient but a very insistent God who is open to our search, accepts us in our brokenness and has a permanent invitation to the living water. As with the Samaritan woman, who is a symbol of sinful humankind, God is waiting for us. The dialogue and interplay with the reality of our life experience are pregnant with the possibility of the new life that the living water brings. As we gradually surrender our fears and defenses, we are able to admit and name our thirst. It is of such depth and magnitude that only Jesus can quench it with the power of His word that is the living water.